The emergence of Su-57 fighter jets in Syria may become a deterrent for aircraft of neighboring states that periodically fly into the country, said State Duma deputy, Vladimir Gutenev.

Earlier, media sources had spotted Russia’s Su-57 in the skies of Syria, landing at Russia’s Khmeimim base. This type of aircraft are not yet officially in service of the Russian Defence forces, and are undergoing testing. Such testing can take two to three years.

According to the deputy, “the appearance of this new aircraft in Syria is absolutely the right step. It is important to test them in combat conditions.”

The Su-57 is a fifth generation fighter jet, the most advanced in the Russian air force. The video appears to capture its first combat drill.

Inessa Sinchougova is an Editor and Journalist at Fort Russ News, as well as a research fellow and translator of the Belgrade based think-tank, the Center for Syncretic Studies. She was educated at Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand), in the field of Political Science and was previously employed in Marketing and Communications Strategy for a Multi-National Corporation. She runs a popular YouTube channel for translations of key Russian Foreign Policy figures and appears regularly on other alternative media channels. If you like her work, you can support her Patreon here.